Center Streetscape Committee reaffirms brick sidewalk recommendation

Bill Whelan wwhelan@wickedlocal.com @wvwhelan

Monday

Dec 19, 2016 at 3:16 PMDec 19, 2016 at 3:17 PM

After appearing to reopen the issue some weeks ago, the Center Streetscape Design Review Ad Hoc Committee reaffirmed its recommendation that the Lexington Center Streetscape project use brick sidewalks in its meeting on Dec. 15.

The committee voted 7-1, with one abstention, to recommend brick sidewalks throughout the Center Streetscape project.

According to Howard Levin, chair of the committee, the feedback they received was that brick was seen as comforting, inviting and an historic part of Lexington Center. He also said that the committee was confident that over time brick is better than concrete for those with disabilities, can hold up longer and is easier to maintain than concrete.

“The way brick is installed today is very different from 50 years ago,” Levin said, noting the age and condition of the brick sidewalk in Lexington and comparing it to the newer brick installations in downtown Boston.

The ad hoc committee was created by selectmen in February to study all the design aspects of the Center Streetscape project, which aims to renovate the roadway and sidewalks along Massachusetts Avenue between Woburn Street and Meriam Street, and make recommendations to the board.

“Lexington Center is primarily a commercial center. It's successful because people like to come here to shop, dine and spend time. No matter what we do we have to maintain a place where people want to come for those activities,” Levin said. “At the same time, the center needs to be accessible to everyone. Currently it doesn’t meet those standards.”

The committee is comprised of nine members who represent different stakeholders in the Lexington Center Community, including the Historic Districts Commission, the Disabilities Commission, the Historic Commission, the Planning Board, the Center Committee, Tree Committee, the Tourism Committee and the Bicycle Advisory Committee.

The committee has broken down its design recommendations into three tiers. Tier One included sidewalk materials and lighting. Tier Two includes landscaping, street furniture and overall road layout. Tier Three includes signage, roadway features, budgeting and project management.

The committee gave its Tier One recommendations in September, which included the vote for brick sidewalk materials. After listening to brick and concrete experts at subsequent committee meetings, and debating on what was the best surface for the disabled population of Lexington, committee members reaffirmed their findings Thursday.

Levin said the committee plans to host a public hearing on Jan. 11 to present its final recommendations from all three tiers to the community before presenting its recommendations to the Board of Selectmen.

Selectmen will then choose to adopt or not adopt the committee's recommendations and put forward a funding proposal to Town Meeting. That proposal will ask an engineering firm come in and take the currently 25 percent-completed design closer to 100 percent completion.